The present invention relates to automotive vehicles. More specifically, the present invention relates to testing of alternators in such vehicles.
Automotive vehicles include a storage battery for operating electronics in the vehicle and using an electric starter to start the vehicle engine. A battery charging system includes an alternator which is coupled to the engine and is powered by the engine when the vehicle is running. The charging system is used to charge the storage battery when the vehicle is operating.
Many techniques have been developed for testing the battery and related systems of the vehicle. Example techniques that have been pioneered by Dr. Keith S. Champlin and Midtronics, Inc. are shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,873,911, issued Mar. 25, 1975, to Champlin; U.S. Pat. No. 3,909,708, issued Sep. 30, 1975, to Champlin; U.S. Pat. No. 4,816,768, issued Mar. 28, 1989, to Champlin; U.S. Pat. No. 4,825,170, issued Apr. 25, 1989, to Champlin; U.S. Pat. No. 4,881,038, issued Nov. 14, 1989, to Champlin; U.S. Pat. No. 4,912,416, issued Mar. 27, 1990, to Champlin; U.S. Pat. No. 5,140,269, issued Aug. 18, 1992, to Champlin; U.S. Pat. No. 5,343,380, issued Aug. 30, 1994; U.S. Pat. No. 5,572,136, issued Nov. 5, 1996; U.S. Pat. No. 5,574,355, issued Nov. 12, 1996; U.S. Pat. No. 5,583,416, issued Dec. 10, 1996; U.S. Pat. No. 5,585,728, issued Dec. 17, 1996; U.S. Pat. No. 5,589,757, issued Dec. 31, 1996; U.S. Pat. No. 5,592,093, issued Jan. 7, 1997; U.S. Pat. No. 5,598,098, issued Jan. 28, 1997; U.S. Pat. No. 5,656,920, issued Aug. 12, 1997; U.S. Pat. No. 5,757,192, issued May 26, 1998; U.S. Pat. No. 5,821,756, issued Oct. 13, 1998; U.S. Pat. No. 5,831,435, issued Nov. 3, 1998; U.S. Pat. No. 5,871,858, issued Feb. 16, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 5,914,605, issued Jun. 22, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 5,945,829, issued Aug. 31, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 6,002,238, issued Dec. 14, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 6,037,751, issued Mar. 14, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 6,037,777, issued Mar. 14, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 6,051,976, issued Apr. 18, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 6,081,098, issued Jun. 27, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 6,091,245, issued Jul. 18, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 6,104,167, issued Aug. 15, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 6,137,269, issued Oct. 24, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 6,163,156, issued Dec. 19, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 6,172,483, issued Jan. 9, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,172,505, issued Jan. 9, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,222,369, issued Apr. 24, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,225,808, issued May 1, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,249,124, issued Jun. 19, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,259,254, issued Jul. 10, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,262,563, issued Jul. 17, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,294,896, issued Sep. 25, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,294,897, issued Sep. 25, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,304,087, issued Oct. 16, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,310,481, issued Oct. 30, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,313,607, issued Nov. 6, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,313,608, issued Nov. 6, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,316,914, issued Nov. 13, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,323,650, issued Nov. 27, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,329,793, issued Dec. 11, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,331,762, issued Dec. 18, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,332,113, issued Dec. 18, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,351,102, issued Feb. 26, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,359,441, issued Mar. 19, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,363,303, issued Mar. 26, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,377,031, issued Apr. 23, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,392,414, issued May 21, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,417,669, issued Jul. 9, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,424,158, issued Jul. 23, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,441,585, issued Aug. 17, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,437,957, issued Aug. 20, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,445,158, issued Sep. 3, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,456,045; U.S. Pat. No. 6,466,025, issued Oct. 15, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,465,908, issued Oct. 15, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,466,026, issued Oct. 15, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,469,511, issued Nov. 22, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,495,990, issued Dec. 17, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,497,209, issued Dec. 24, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,507,196, issued Jan. 14, 2003; U.S. Pat. No. 6,534,993; issued Mar. 18, 2003; U.S. Pat. No. 6,544,078, issued Apr. 8, 2003; U.S. Pat. No. 6,556,019, issued Apr. 29, 2003; U.S. Pat. No. 6,566,883, issued May 20, 2003; U.S. Pat. No. 6,586,941, issued Jul. 1, 2003; U.S. Pat. No. 6,597,150, issued Jul. 22, 2003; U.S. Pat. No. 6,621,272, issued Sep. 16, 2003; U.S. Pat. No. 6,623,314, issued Sep. 23, 2003; U.S. Pat. No. 6,633,165, issued Oct. 14, 2003; U.S. Pat. No. 6,635,974, issued Oct. 21, 2003; U.S. Pat. No. 6,696,819, issued Feb. 24, 20144; U.S. Pat. No. 6,707,303, issued Mar. 16, 2004; U.S. Pat. No. 6,737,831, issued May 18, 2004; U.S. Pat. No. 6,744,149, issued Jun. 1, 2004; U.S. Pat. No. 6,759,849, issued Jul. 6, 2004; U.S. Pat. No. 6,781,382, issued Aug. 24, 2004; U.S. Pat. No. 6,788,025, filed Sep. 7, 2004; U.S. Pat. No. 6,795,782, issued Sep. 21, 2004; U.S. Pat. No. 6,805,090, filed Oct. 19, 2004; U.S. Pat. No. 6,806,716, filed Oct. 19, 2004; U.S. Pat. No. 6,850,037, filed Feb. 1, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,850,037, issued Feb. 1, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,871,151, issued Mar. 22, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,885,195, issued Apr. 26, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,888,468, issued May 3, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,891,378, issued May 10, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,906,522, issued Jun. 14, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,906,523, issued Jun. 14, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,909,287, issued Jun. 21, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,914,413, issued Jul. 5, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,913,483, issued Jul. 5, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,930,485, issued Aug. 16, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,933,727, issued Aug. 23, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,941,234, filed Sep. 6, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,967,484, issued Nov. 22, 2005; U.S. Pat. No. 6,998,847, issued Feb. 14, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 7,003,410, issued Feb. 21, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 7,003,411, issued Feb. 21, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 7,012,433, issued Mar. 14, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 7,015,674, issued Mar. 21, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 7,034,541, issued Apr. 25, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 7,039,533, issued May 2, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 7,058,525, issued Jun. 6, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 7,081,755, issued Jul. 25, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 7,106,070, issued Sep. 12, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 7,116,109, issued Oct. 3, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 7,119,686, issued Oct. 10, 2006; and U.S. Pat. No. 7,126,341, issued Oct. 24, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 7,154,276, issued Dec. 26, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 7,198,510, issued Apr. 3, 2007; U.S. Pat. No. 7,363,175, issued Apr. 22, 2008; U.S. Pat. No. 7,208,914, issued Apr. 24, 2007; U.S. Pat. No. 7,246,015, issued Jul. 17, 2007; U.S. Pat. No. 7,295,936, issued Nov. 13, 2007; U.S. Pat. No. 7,319,304, issued Jan. 15, 2008; U.S. Pat. No. 7,363,175, issued Apr. 22, 2008; U.S. Pat. No. 7,398,176, issued Jul. 8, 2008; U.S. Pat. No. 7,408,358, issued Aug. 5, 2008; U.S. Pat. No. 7,425,833, issued Sep. 16, 2008; U.S. Pat. No. 7,446,536, issued Nov. 4, 2008; U.S. Pat. No. 7,479,763, issued Jan. 20, 2009; U.S. Pat. No. 7,498,767, issued Mar. 3, 2009; U.S. Pat. No. 7,501,795, issued Mar. 10, 2009; U.S. Pat. No. 7,505,856, issued Mar. 17, 2009; U.S. Pat. No. 7,545,146, issued Jun. 9, 2009; U.S. Pat. No. 7,557,586, issued Jul. 7, 2009; U.S. Pat. No. 7,595,643, issued Sep. 29, 2009; U.S. Pat. No. 7,598,699, issued Oct. 6, 2009; U.S. Pat. No. 7,598,744, issued Oct. 6, 2009; U.S. Pat. No. 7,598,743, issued Oct. 6, 2009; U.S. Pat. No. 7,619,417, issued Nov. 17, 2009; U.S. Pat. No. 7,642,786, issued Jan. 5, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 7,642,787, issued Jan. 5, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 7,656,162, issued Feb. 2, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 7,688,074, issued Mar. 30, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 7,705,602, issued Apr. 27, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 7,706,992, issued Apr. 27, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 7,710,119, issued May 4, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 7,723,993, issued May 25, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 7,728,597, issued Jun. 1, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 7,772,850, issued Aug. 10, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 7,774,151, issued Aug. 10, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 7,777,612, issued Aug. 17, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 7,791,348, issued Sep. 7, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 7,808,375, issued Oct. 5, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 7,924,015, issued Apr. 12, 2011; U.S. Pat. No. 7,940,053, issued May 10, 2011; U.S. Pat. No. 7,940,052, issued May 10, 2011; U.S. Pat. No. 7,959,476, issued Jun. 14, 2011; U.S. Pat. No. 7,977,914, issued Jul. 12, 2011; U.S. Pat. No. 7,999,505, issued Aug. 16, 2011; U.S. Pat. No. D643,759, issued Aug. 23, 2011; U.S. Pat. No. 8,164,343, issued Apr. 24, 2012; U.S. Pat. No. 8,198,900, issued Jun. 12, 2012; U.S. Pat. No. 8,203,345, issued Jun. 19, 2012; U.S. Pat. No. 8,237,448, issued Aug. 7, 2012; U.S. Pat. No. 8,306,690, issued Nov. 6, 2012; U.S. Pat. No. 8,344,685, issued Jan. 1, 2013; U.S. Pat. No. 8,436,619, issued May 7, 2013; U.S. Pat. No. 8,442,877, issued May 14, 2013; U.S. Pat. No. 8,493,022, issued Jul. 23, 2013; U.S. Pat. No. D687,727, issued Aug. 13, 2013; U.S. Pat. No. 8,513,949, issued Aug. 20, 2013; U.S. Pat. No. 8,674,654, issued Mar. 18, 2014; U.S. Pat. No. 8,674,711, issued Mar. 18, 2014; U.S. Pat. No. 8,704,483, issued Apr. 22, 2014; U.S. Pat. No. 8,738,309, issued May 27, 2014; U.S. Pat. No. 8,754,653, issued Jun. 17, 2014; U.S. Pat. No. 8,872,516, issued Oct. 28, 2014; U.S. Pat. No. 8,872,517, issued Oct. 28, 2014; U.S. Pat. No. 8,958,998, issued Feb. 17, 2015; U.S. Pat. No. 8,963,550, issued Feb. 24, 2015; U.S. Pat. No. 9,018,958, issued Apr. 28, 2015; U.S. Pat. No. 9,052,366, issued Jun. 9, 2015; U.S. Pat. No. 9,201,120, issued Dec. 1, 2015; U.S. Pat. No. 9,229,062, issued Jan. 5, 20126; U.S. Ser. No. 09/780,146, filed Feb. 9, 2001, entitled STORAGE BATTERY WITH INTEGRAL BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 09/756,638, filed Jan. 8, 2001, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DETERMINING BATTERY PROPERTIES FROM COMPLEX IMPEDANCE/ADMITTANCE; U.S. Ser. No. 09/862,783, filed May 21, 2001, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR TESTING CELLS AND BATTERIES EMBEDDED IN SERIES/PARALLEL SYSTEMS; U.S. Ser. No. 09/880,473, filed Jun. 13, 2001; entitled BATTERY TEST MODULE; U.S. Ser. No. 10/109,734, filed Mar. 28, 2002, entitled APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR COUNTERACTING SELF DISCHARGE IN A STORAGE BATTERY; U.S. Ser. No. 10/263,473, filed Oct. 2, 2002, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER WITH RELATIVE TEST OUTPUT; U.S. Ser. No. 09/653,963, filed Sep. 1, 2000, entitled SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING POWER GENERATION AND STORAGE; U.S. Ser. No. 10/174,110, filed Jun. 18, 2002, entitled DAYTIME RUNNING LIGHT CONTROL USING AN INTELLIGENT POWER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM; U.S. Ser. No. 10/258,441, filed Apr. 9, 2003, entitled CURRENT MEASURING CIRCUIT SUITED FOR BATTERIES; U.S. Ser. No. 10/681,666, filed Oct. 8, 2003, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER WITH PROBE LIGHT; U.S. Ser. No. 60/587,232, filed Dec. 14, 2004, entitled CELLTRON ULTRA, U.S. Ser. No. 60/653,537, filed Feb. 16, 2005, entitled CUSTOMER MANAGED WARRANTY CODE; U.S. Ser. No. 60/665,070, filed Mar. 24, 2005, entitled OHMMETER PROTECTION CIRCUIT; U.S. Ser. No. 60,694,199, filed Jun. 27, 2005, entitled GEL BATTERY CONDUCTANCE COMPENSATION; U.S. Ser. No. 60/705,389, filed Aug. 4, 2005, entitled PORTABLE TOOL THEFT PREVENTION SYSTEM, U.S. Ser. No. 11/207,419, filed Aug. 19, 2005, entitled SYSTEM FOR AUTOMATICALLY GATHERING BATTERY INFORMATION FOR USE DURING BATTERY TESTER/CHARGING, U.S. Ser. No. 60/712,322, filed Aug. 29, 2005, entitled AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM DIAGNOSTIC DEVICE, U.S. Ser. No. 60/713,168, filed Aug. 31, 2005, entitled LOAD TESTER SIMULATION WITH DISCHARGE COMPENSATION, U.S. Ser. No. 60/731,881, filed Oct. 31, 2005, entitled PLUG-IN FEATURES FOR BATTERY TESTERS; U.S. Ser. No. 60/731,887, filed Oct. 31, 2005, entitled AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM DIAGNOSTIC DEVICE; U.S. Ser. No. 60/751,853, filed Dec. 20, 2005, entitled BATTERY MONITORING SYSTEM; U.S. Ser. No. 60/751,853, filed Dec. 20, 2005, entitled BATTERY MONITORING SYSTEM; U.S. Ser. No. 11/356,443, filed Feb. 16, 2006, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER WITH NETWORK COMMUNICATION; U.S. Ser. No. 60/847,064, filed Sep. 25, 2006, entitled STATIONARY BATTERY MONITORING ALGORITHMS; U.S. Ser. No. 60/950,182, filed Jul. 17, 2007, entitled BATTERY TESTER FOR HYBRID VEHICLE; U.S. Ser. No. 60/973,879, filed Sep. 20, 2007, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER FOR TESTING STATIONARY BATTERIES; U.S. Ser. No. 60/992,798, filed Dec. 6, 2007, entitled STORAGE BATTERY AND BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 61/061,848, filed Jun. 16, 2008, entitled KELVIN CLAMP FOR ELECTRONICALLY COUPLING TO A BATTERY CONTACT; U.S. Ser. No. 12/697,485, filed Feb. 1, 2010, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 12/712,456, filed Feb. 25, 2010, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DETECTING CELL DETERIORATION IN AN ELECTROCHEMICAL CELL OR BATTERY; U.S. Ser. No. 61/311,485, filed Mar. 8, 2010, entitled BATTERY TESTER WITH DATABUS FOR COMMUNICATING WITH VEHICLE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM; U.S. Ser. No. 61/313,893, filed Mar. 15, 2010, entitled USE OF BATTERY MANUFACTURE/SELL DATE IN DIAGNOSIS AND RECOVERY OF DISCHARGED BATTERIES; U.S. Ser. No. 12/769,911, filed Apr. 29, 2010, entitled STATIONARY BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 61/330,497, filed May 3, 2010, entitled MAGIC WAND WITH ADVANCED HARNESS DETECTION; U.S. Ser. No. 61/348,901, filed May 27, 2010, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 61/351,017, filed Jun. 3, 2010, entitled IMPROVED ELECTRIC VEHICLE AND HYBRID ELECTRIC VEHICLE BATTERY MODULE BALANCER; U.S. Ser. No. 12/818,290, filed Jun. 18, 2010, entitled BATTERY MAINTENANCE DEVICE WITH THERMAL BUFFER; U.S. Ser. No. 61/373,045, filed Aug. 12, 2010, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER FOR TESTING STATIONARY STORAGE BATTERY; U.S. Ser. No. 12/888,689, filed Sep. 23, 2010, entitled BATTERY TESTER FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLE; U.S. Ser. No. 61/411,162, filed Nov. 8, 2010, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 13/037,641, filed Mar. 1, 2011, entitled MONITOR FOR FRONT TERMINAL BATTERIES; U.S. Ser. No. 13/098,661, filed May 2, 2011, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MEASURING A PARAMETER OF A VEHICLE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM; U.S. Ser. No. 13/152,711, filed Jun. 3, 2011, entitled BATTERY PACK MAINTENANCE FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLE; U.S. Ser. No. 61/558,088, filed Nov. 10, 2011, entitled BATTERY PACK TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 13/357,306, filed Jan. 24, 2012, entitled STORAGE BATTERY AND BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 61/665,555, filed Jun. 28, 2012, entitled HYBRID AND ELECTRIC VEHICLE BATTERY MAINTENANCE DEVICE; U.S. Ser. No. 13/668,523, filed Nov. 5, 2012, entitled BATTERY TESTER FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLE; U.S. Ser. No. 13/672,186, filed Nov. 8, 2012, entitled BATTERY PACK TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 61/777,360, filed Mar. 12, 2013, entitled DETERMINATION OF STARTING CURRENT IN AN AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLE; U.S. Ser. No. 61/777,392, filed Mar. 12, 2013, entitled DETERMINATION OF CABLE DROP DURING A STARTING EVENT IN AN AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLE; U.S. Ser. No. 13/827,128, filed Mar. 14, 2013, entitled HYBRID AND ELECTRIC VEHICLE BATTERY MAINTENANCE DEVICE; U.S. Ser. No. 61/789,189, filed Mar. 15, 2013, entitled CURRENT CLAMP WITH JAW CLOSURE DETECTION; U.S. Ser. No. 61/824,056, filed May 16, 2013, entitled BATTERY TESTING SYSTEM AND METHOD; U.S. Ser. No. 61/859,991, filed Jul. 30, 2013, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MONITORING A PLURALITY OF STORAGE BATTERIES IN A STATIONARY BACK-UP POWER SYSTEM; U.S. Ser. No. 14/039,746, filed Sep. 27, 2013, entitled BATTERY PACK MAINTENANCE FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLE; U.S. Ser. No. 61/915,157, filed Dec. 12, 2013, entitled BATTERY TESTER AND BATTERY REGISTRATION TOOL; U.S. Ser. No. 61/928,167, filed Jan. 16, 2014, entitled BATTERY CLAMP WITH ENDOSKELETON DESIGN; U.S. Ser. No. 14/204,286, filed Mar. 11, 2014, entitled CURRENT CLAMP WITH JAW CLOSURE DETECTION; U.S. Ser. No. 14/276,276, filed May 13, 2014, entitled BATTERY TESTING SYSTEM AND METHOD; U.S. Ser. No. 62/024,037, filed Jul. 14, 2014, entitled COMBINATION SERVICE TOOL; U.S. Ser. No. 62/055,884, filed Sep. 26, 2014, entitled CABLE CONNECTOR FOR ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 14/565,689, filed Dec. 10, 2014, entitled BATTERY TESTER AND BATTERY REGISTRATION TOOL; U.S. Ser. No. 14/598,445, filed Jan. 16, 2015, entitled BATTERY CLAMP WITH ENDOSKELETON DESIGN; U.S. Ser. No. 62/107,648, filed Jan. 26, 2015, entitled ALTERNATOR TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 62/137,491, filed Mar. 24, 2015, entitled BATTERY MAINTENANCE SYSTEM; U.S. Ser. No. 62/154,251, filed Apr. 29, 2015, entitled CALIBRATION AND PROGRAMMING OF IN-VEHICLE BATTERY SENSORS; U.S. Ser. No. 62/155,045, filed Apr. 30, 2015, entitled CALIBRATION AND PROGRAMMING OF IN-VEHICLE BATTERY SENSORS; U.S. Ser. No. 62/161,555, filed May 14, 2015, entitled ALTERNATOR TESTER, U.S. Ser. No. 14/799,120, filed Jul. 14, 2015, entitled AUTOMOTIVE MAINTENANCE SYSTEM; U.S. Ser. No. 14/861,027, filed Sep. 22, 2015, entitled CABLE CONNECTOR FOR ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 62/233,614, filed Sep. 28, 2015, entitled KELVIN CONNECTOR ADAPTOR FOR STORAGE BATTERY; all of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.
With the advent of accurate battery testing, it has become apparent that in some instances the battery in the vehicle may be good, and a problem related to the battery charging system is the cause of the perceived battery failure. A vehicle charging system generally includes the battery, an alternator, a regulator and an alternator drive belt. The role of the charging system is two fold. First, the alternator provides charging current for the battery. This charging current ensures that the battery remains charged while the vehicle is being driven and therefore will have sufficient capacity to subsequently start the engine. Second, the alternator provides an output current to power all of the vehicle electrical loads. In general, the alternator output, the battery capacity, the starter draw and the vehicle electrical load requirements are matched to each other for optimal performance. In a properly functioning charging system, the alternator will be capable of outputting enough current to drive the vehicle electrical loads while simultaneously charging the battery. Typically, alternators range in size from 60 to 120 amps.
There is a significant problem in the automotive industry with alternators that are replaced and subsequently determined to be in working condition. With alternators, this problem is even more significant than in the case of a storage battery which is replaced unnecessarily. This is because alternators may be much more expensive as well as much more difficult to replace than a storage battery.
Further, removing of an alternator from a vehicle, testing the alternator itself may be problematic. The alternator may be designed to communicate with a control system of the vehicle. Further, the complete testing of the alternator requires application of electrical loads while also applying a mechanical input to the alternator.
The difficulty in testing an alternator may result in an unnecessary warranty claims, expenses to vehicle owners, and a failure to identify a failure in a vehicle charging system.